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Tuesday, February 23, 2016

I'm Traveling Alone by Samuel Bjørk

Mia is ready to end it all. She's counting down the days, in fact. But her plans go awry when her old boss, Holger Munch, pays her a very important visit. A six-year-old girl has been found hanging from a tree. The body has been carefully cleaned and dressed, posed with a schoolbag full of books and a sign reading "I'm traveling alone" placed around her neck. Once upon a time, Mia was part of an elite investigative squad whose job was to handle cases exactly like this. But scrutiny on a particularly touchy and personal case caused the squad to be disbanded and its members scattered. In spite of all of that, Mia's skills have never been in doubt and it's her insight the police need now. Unfortunately, Mia can't offer a quick solution or the killer's head on a silver platter. What she can offer is worse: the assurance that this is just the first in what will surely be a string of child murders. A crime so egregious means even those most staunchly against reuniting Munch's crew have to admit that the squad - including Mia and led by Munch - is their best chance to solve this case and hopefully prevent more death. But can Mia overcome her own personal issues in order to be of any use?

I'm Traveling Alone kicks off what I expect will be a quite exciting new Scandinavian crime series! The plot is twisted and extremely well built, worthy of characters like Mia, Munch, and the others. In fact, while Mia and Munch quickly shoot to the head of the list as possible main characters, Bjørk's debut features the team as a whole (with admittedly heavy focus on Mia and Munch) rather than a true lead character.

It's a fun way to set up such a series because it gives the author a chance to highlight each character's skills.

One downside to this is that Bjørk switches narrators quite frequently, not limiting himself even to the team. Various players and witnesses are introduced throughout the novel to show different aspects of the growing mystery. It's a method that can quite often work against the author and reader, making the story harder to get fully engrossed in. I have to say, however, that in this instance I thought it worked. Each new narrator, rather than taking me out of the story or jarring the narrative, offered a new layer to the overall plot.

To date there are two titles in the series in Bjørk's native Norway (Samuel Bjørk, by the way, is the pseudonym used by Frode Sander Øien for his thrillers). I'm Traveling Alone has just been released here in the States and I do very much hope we'll get to see The Owl soon!